Improvement in railway rails



PATENT QEEICE.

ALMERON MGKENNEY, OF MAUMEE CITY, OHIO.A

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILWAY RAILS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 117,658, dated August 1, 1871.

To all whom t may conce/rn:

Be it known that I, ALMERoN MGKENNEY, of Maumee, in the county of Lucas and in the State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railroad Rails; and do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and eX- act description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing and to the letters of reference marked thereon making apart of this specication. l

The nature of my invention consists in the construction and arrangement of a compound railroad rail in two parts, each in the form f an arch, and put together so that one part shall overlap the ends of the other so as to effectually support the joint,v and form a continuous rail. It also consists in the construction of a railroad chair, to be used in connection with my railroad rail, all of which will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe its construction and operation, referring to the annexed drawing, in which- Figure l is an end view of my rail without the chair. Fig. 2 is an end view of the same with the chair. Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the chair, and Fig. is a side view of the rail.

A and B represent the two parts of which my railroad rail is composed. The inner part A is constructed, as shown, with arch a, perpendicular sides al al, and side extensions a2 a2, forming the base of the rail., The under side ofthe base a2 is inclined, as shown, so that the rail rests on the outer edges and yields for any pressure upon it. The outer part or-cap E is also formed in the shape of an arch, Z), with perpendicular sides b b' tting over the arch and sides of the part A. The lower edge of the sides b b are rounded and inserted into grooves formed at the joint of sides al al and base a2 of the inner part A of the rail.

This part A thus supports the cap B, and they V so as to stand across the slot of the washer, which.

effectually holds the parts of the rail together without any screws or nuts, thus avoiding or 0bviating the liability of coming apart. E represents the railroad chair with a central arch, e, short perpendicular sides el 61, horizontal base e2, and upward-projecting dan ges e3 at the outer edges of the base e2. that the base of the rail proper does not rest solidly upon the base of the chair,l but only at the outer edges bearingagainst the iianges e3,- thus when the rail yields to any pressure upon it the chair spreads slightly.

In the manufacture of railroad rails the leading objects kept in view have been 'to support the joints and secure vertical stiness. To effect the former the joints have been encumbered with chairs, brackets, and sh-plates, and as to the latter, the practice is to make them broader and heavier, or to make a heavy steel rail. But all these plans are more or less defective and fail to secure the desired result.

My plan is to make the rail in two parts, so as to make it light and the metal worked in small bulk. By this means it can be more thoroughly worked and rened in the process of rolling. I also avoid eXtreme expansion and contraction, secure a more perfect joint longitudinally, and close the parts rmly together laterally. rllhe p arts are constructed in the form of an arch to enable me to lap the parts so as to effectually support the joints and to renew the upper part, when desired, and also to put the metal in the form which sha-ll afford the greatest strength, and to secure an air-passage in the hollow of the rail whereby extreme eX- pansion and contraction are avoided. This form also affords stiffness in the parts between the head and the base of the rail, and further makes the whole rail elastic, and provides especially for the elasticity in the base and chair. Stiffness of the rail is not secured by making it heavy and in one piece. On the contrary, some ofthe heaviest have proved to be weak and have gone to pieces sooner than some very light ones, and too much iron, and that necessarily of poor quality, has been put into the head. The head of my rail is light and elastic, and is reversible,l so as to be turned if it becomes too much worn on one side. The weight is supported by four perpendicular pieces. rlhe effect from cold and heat will necessarily be less upon a light than upon a heavy body, and my rail being in two parts, thin, and

It will be noticed in Fig. 2

with an air-passage in the interior, the effect longitudinally must be Very triiiin g, and laterally no inconvenience can result from it on account ofthe parts yielding` and the cooling feature inside ofthe rail.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A railroad rail made in two parts, A and B, each in arch for1n,with perpendicular sides, forniing an interior air-passage, and the inner part A having a base inclined on its under side, all substantially in the manner and for the purposes herein set forth.

2. The chair E, constructed as described, with arch c, perpendicular sides el, horizontal base e2, and flanges c3, all substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 6th day of July, 1871.

A. MCKENNEY.

Witnesses:

G. L. EVERT, A. N. MARR. 

